Chapter 5 — The Way He Smiled
1419 Words
By the time the workshop activity ended, the architecture freshmen collectively looked ready to abandon higher education entirely.
A serious issue honestly.
Cardboard scraps covered almost every table.
Tape stuck to random sleeves.
Several students argued dramatically about structural balance like their lives depended on it.
Meanwhile—
near the center of the workshop room—
the architecture seniors walked around judging each group’s finished model with terrifying seriousness.
Completely normal architecture behavior honestly.
At one table, two freshmen created something that looked emotionally unstable.
At another, somebody accidentally glued their sleeve to cardboard.
A disaster honestly.
Then—
the senior eventually stopped beside Tharin and Aran’s table again.
And immediately froze.
Reasonable honestly.
Because somehow—
their structure actually looked professional.
Clean lines.
Balanced support.
Carefully measured angles.
A serious contrast compared to the surrounding disasters honestly.
The senior slowly looked between them afterward.
Then suspiciously toward Aran.
Architecture Senior: “…You sure you’re not secretly an architecture student?”
Aran answered calmly.
Aran: “No.”
Silence.
Then immediately—
Architecture Senior: “Then why does this look better than half the class projects from last year?”
Nearby students burst into laughter instantly.
A complete disaster honestly.
Meanwhile—
Tharin looked slightly embarrassed while lowering his eyes toward the model.
Because honestly?
He wasn’t used to public praise.
Especially not in front of crowds.
A serious issue.
Beside him—
Aran noticed immediately.
Of course he did.
Because somehow—
his attention naturally followed every small reaction Tharin made now.
A terrifying development honestly.
The senior continued staring dramatically at the structure before finally pointing toward Tharin.
Architecture Senior: “Freshman Rin.”
Tharin blinked once.
Architecture Senior: “You’re officially adopted by the architecture faculty.”
Silence.
Then suddenly—
more laughter spread around the room again.
Warm laughter.
Not cruel.
Not mocking.
Just genuine amusement.
And honestly?
That surprised Tharin slightly.
Because at his previous school—
attention usually felt dangerous.
Back then:
people whispered,
laughed behind his back,
or treated his feelings like entertainment.
A terrible experience honestly.
But here?
Nobody looked cruel.
Nobody sounded fake.
The atmosphere felt lighter somehow.
And for the first time since transferring—
Tharin slowly relaxed without realizing it.
Meanwhile—
Aran watched the small smile appear on his face afterward.
And suddenly—
something tightened painfully inside his chest.
A serious issue honestly.
Because somehow—
seeing Tharin happy mattered too much already.
A terrifying realization.
Across the workshop room, Chai stared dramatically toward the ceiling afterward.
Chai: “This is becoming emotional.”
Nearby freshmen looked confused.
Reasonable honestly.
Because Chai behaved like a man personally watching his favorite television drama unfold.
A serious character flaw.
After the judging finally ended, the architecture seniors announced a short break before the next campus activity.
Immediate cheering exploded throughout the workshop room.
Reasonable honestly.
Everyone already looked spiritually exhausted.
Meanwhile—
students quickly gathered their belongings while talking excitedly with new friends.
Some exchanged social media accounts.
Others took group photos near the display shelves.
And somehow—
despite only knowing each other one day—
many freshmen already looked emotionally attached.
Trauma bonding honestly.
A powerful thing.
Near the back table, Tharin carefully packed the leftover materials into neat piles automatically.
Then immediately—
another hand reached over and took the tape dispenser from him first.
Silence.
Because of course it was Aran.
A disaster honestly.
Tharin looked up instinctively.
Tharin: “I can do it.”
Aran answered calmly.
Aran: “I know.”
Then continued helping anyway.
Psychotic honestly.
Because somehow—
Aran treated assisting Tharin like a natural responsibility already.
A serious issue.
Nearby students openly stared again.
At this point nobody even tried hiding it.
Reasonable honestly.
Because:
* Aran never stayed around people this long,
* he almost never helped strangers repeatedly,
* and he definitely didn’t voluntarily attend architecture activities.
Yet somehow—
he remained beside Tharin the entire afternoon.
A terrifying development for campus gossip honestly.
Meanwhile—
outside the architecture building—
one hidden bodyguard quietly watched students leaving through the glass entrance while speaking through an earpiece.
Bodyguard: “No immediate concerns.”
Inside the black sedan parked nearby—
Than Aiyarak calmly looked out the tinted window toward the architecture building in silence.
Dangerous silence honestly.
Because although Than trusted the bodyguards—
he still preferred personally monitoring situations involving Tharin whenever possible.
A serious issue.
The bodyguard continued speaking softly.
Bodyguard: “The university senior remains close to Young Master Rin.”
Silence.
Then calmly—
Than: “How close?”
Another pause.
Bodyguard: “…Consistently.”
Inside the vehicle—
Than’s eyes narrowed slightly afterward.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
Meanwhile—
completely unaware of the hidden surveillance surrounding him—
Tharin followed the architecture freshmen toward the next activity area beside Chai.
Unfortunately—
Aran naturally walked beside them again.
A disaster honestly.
Several girls near the staircase immediately started whispering.
“Why are they still together?”
“He keeps looking at him.”
“The freshman is seriously pretty.”
Dangerous comments honestly.
Because every single one made Tharin more aware of Aran’s presence somehow.
A serious issue.
Meanwhile—
Aran looked completely unaffected by everyone staring.
Which honestly made things worse.
Because somehow—
he acted like staying near Tharin felt normal already.
Psychotic behavior honestly.
As they walked through one of the outdoor pathways, the late afternoon sunlight covered the campus in warm orange light.
Students crowded every direction.
Music still blasted near the central stage.
Faculty booths handed out drinks and snacks while exhausted freshmen wandered around like spiritually wounded survivors.
Completely normal orientation atmosphere honestly.
Then unexpectedly—
someone bumped hard into Tharin from behind while rushing through the crowd.
A serious issue.
Because Tharin immediately lost balance slightly.
Before he could react—
Aran’s hand caught his wrist instantly.
Silence.
Real silence.
Because suddenly—
everything around Tharin became too loud and too quiet at the same time.
A disaster honestly.
Aran’s grip wasn’t rough.
Just steady.
Warm.
Protective naturally.
And honestly?
That somehow felt even more dangerous.
Nearby students physically stopped walking.
Reasonable honestly.
Because Aran Rattanakosin voluntarily holding someone’s wrist in public felt historically significant.
A terrifying event for campus gossip honestly.
Meanwhile—
Aran looked calm externally.
Internally?
Absolute chaos.
Because touching Tharin again felt strangely natural now.
Like his body reacted before his thoughts even caught up.
Dangerous realization honestly.
Tharin looked down briefly toward their hands afterward.
And immediately—
his heartbeat became unstable again.
A serious issue.
Because nobody held him carefully like this outside family before.
Not comfortably.
Not gently.
Most people approached him because of appearances.
Because they thought he looked easy to flirt with.
Easy to impress.
But Aran?
Different somehow.
That difference scared him slightly.
Then quietly—
Aran asked:
Aran: “You okay?”
Silence.
Tharin looked up afterward.
And for one brief second—
their faces stood dangerously close.
A complete disaster honestly.
Because suddenly—
Tharin noticed details he shouldn’t focus on.
Like:
* how sharp Aran’s eyes looked up close,
* the faint scent of cologne lingering around him,
* and how unexpectedly warm his voice sounded compared to campus rumors.
Dangerous observations honestly.
After a second—
Tharin quickly nodded.
Tharin: “Mn.”
Only then did Aran slowly release his wrist.
And honestly?
The sudden absence of warmth felt strangely noticeable afterward.
A serious issue.
Nearby—
Chai silently witnessed the entire interaction before dramatically covering his face.
Chai: “I need compensation emotionally.”
Reasonable honestly.
Because this situation genuinely felt like watching a live romance drama unfold.
A terrifying thing.
Meanwhile—
one architecture freshman nervously approached their group afterward.
Then awkwardly looked toward Tharin.
Freshman: “Rin… do you want to join us for faculty photos later?”
Silence.
Because honestly—
most people hesitated inviting quiet students into groups.
But somehow—
everyone naturally wanted Tharin included.
A serious phenomenon honestly.
Tharin looked slightly surprised before answering politely.
Tharin: “If it’s okay.”
The freshman immediately smiled.
Freshman: “Of course it’s okay.”
And once again—
Aran noticed something important.
Tharin never assumed people wanted him around.
Not confidently.
Not naturally.
Like somewhere deep down—
he still expected rejection first.
And suddenly—
Aran hated that thought more than expected.
A dangerous feeling honestly.
Because without fully realizing it—
Aran already started wanting to protect him from things he didn’t even understand yet.
- Writer
